Curtain-fixture.



PATBNTED AUG. 13, 1907.

G. H. FORSYTH. CURTAIN FIXTURE. APPLIoAHoH FILED JULY 1a, 1901.

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TH: Hormis persas cn., wAsmNaraN. n c4 PATENTED AUG. 13, 1907.

G. H. FRSYTH. CURTAIN FIXTURE. APPLIoATIoN FILED JULY1s.19o1.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

CURTAIN-FIXTURE Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Aug'. 13, 1907.

Application filed July 13,1901. Serial No. 68,213.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known thatl I, GEORGE H. FoRsYTH, of Chicago, Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Curtain-Fixtures, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to a fixture which is designed to be used with a spring actuated curtain, and my improved xture comprises a head carried by the curtain and having one or more rollers mounted therein, and capable of both a rotary and a bodily movement with brake surfaces arranged adjacent to said rollers and either above or below the same, so' that no matter in which position the head may be applied, the roller will be moved into Contact with the brake when the curtain is released or when it is being raised, and thus serve as a friction device for retaining the curtain in its adjusted. position. 1 preferably employ heads which are mounted upon rods arranged'vwithin a tubular shade stick and which are acted upon by outwardly thrusting springs so as to keep the rollers in contact with the window frame.

1n the accompanying drawings Figure l is a broken elevation, partly in section, showing a window curtain, a part of the window frame and one end of the curtain fixture; Fig. 2 is a similar view showing both ends of the fixture and the shade stick in a canted position;

Figs. 3 and 4 are detail views showing the preferred construction.

1n the drawings 5 represents the window curtain mounted upon a spring actuated shade roller indicated at 6; 7 represents a tubular shade stick; 8 a sliding rod therein; 9 a spring surrounding said rod; and l0 the shank of an elongated head ll in which the rollers are mounted. The rollers, l2, are shownin the several views as having their journals 13 movable in slots 14 and the heads are provided with brake surfaces indicated at l5. With this construction when the curtain is drawn up by the pull of the shade roller spring, or pushed up by hand, the upper roller will 'move away from its brake surface and the lower roller will move into Contact with the brake surface beneath it, thus tending to produce such friction upon the window frame as would result in holding the curtain in any adj usted position. lf the rods be provided with pendants whereby they may be withdrawn, then the spring of the shade roller will tend to raise the curtain, and when the rods are released the lower rollers coming into contact with their brakes will act to hold the curtain. When the curtain is pulled down the lower roller will move out of contact with the brake and the upper roller will come into contact with its brake surface, but the power applied will readily overcome the resistance of the brake and the curtain may be drawn down, and when released its upward pull will immediately apply the brake again to the lower roller.

By observing Fig. 2 it will be seen that when the lower edge of the curtain -is moved out of a horizontal plane, (which will occur if force be applied to the stick at either end to push it up or pull it down) the upper roller on one side and the lower roller on the opposite are moved out of contact with the bottom of the groove, and the lower roller remaining in Contact with the frame will also be in contact with the brake, while the upper roller remaining in contact with the frame will be out of contact with the brake, and the tendency will be for the curtain to right itself under the pull of the shade roller spring.

The object of providing a brake for each roller is to render the device operative if applied with either end up. These fixtures are usually sent out by the makers to be erected by the users. 1f the brakes were arranged so as to be effective only when the head is placed in a certain position, the brakes would be altogether inoperative if such position were reversed. Furthermore the Shanks of the heads usually have a threaded connection with the sliding rods to enable the fixtures to be adjusted to any slight variation in the width of the windows, and this necessary adjustment would frequently result in leaving the devicel in an inoperative condition were it not that the brake mechanism is duplicated. 1 do not, however, limit my invention to such duplication because so far as 1 am aware, 1 am the first to provide a curtain holding fixture wherein anti-friction devices such as rollers have been opposed by brakes in both the upward and downward movement of the curtain.

I claim:

1. In a curtain fixture the combination of a spring; actuated shade, a stick carried thereby, and a stationary guide, heads at the ends of the stick provided at each end with an independently operable roller to normally engage the said guide, and braking means operatively associated with said rollers to render the same variable as to their' holding;- power against the guide and alternately active as the fixture is moved up and down.

2. A curtain ixture comprising in combination with a spring actuated shade, of a curtain stick, heads carried by said stick and friction devices carried by said heads. said friction devices comprising rollers journaled in the heads near their ends and non-rotatable brakes adjacent to said rollers, said rollers and said brakes having relative movenient and so placed that when the stick is in a horizontal position the rollers and brakes at the lower ends of said heads and at both ends of the stick are engaged, and when the stick is eanted the roller and brake at the upper end of the lower-most head are released, substantiallyv as described.

A curtain fixture comprising in combination a curtain stick, elongated heads carried by the ends of said stick, anti-friction rollers journaled in said heads near their ends and adapted for bodily movement, and fixed brakes carried' by the heads adjacent to and outside of said rollers and with which the latter are adapted to engage upon the movement of the head, substantially as described.

4. In a curtain fixture, the combination of a head havingl parts forming brakes on opposite sides of its center, and` anti-friction rolls mounted to move bodily in the head and arranged to be moved alternately ont of Contact with their respective brakes upon a movement of the head.

In a curtain fixture, the combination with an elongated head, of anti-friction rollers movably mounted in the head, and brakes above the upper roller and below the lower roller and adapted to engage the same upon the movement of the head.

G. ln a curtain fixture, a shoe to cooperate with a guide- Way, movable guiding members mounted in said shoe and means coacting with said guiding members to automatically vary the freedom of movement of said guiding members to allow the leading guiding member to have greater `frcedom of movement than the trailing guidingmember.

7. In a curtain fixture, a spring actuated curtain, guideways adjacent said curtain, shoes mounted on said curtain to coperate with said guideways, guide rolls mounted in said shoes and grips in said shoes adjacent said guide rolls and relatively movable with respect thereto to be engaged thereby to allow the leading guide rolls to have a greater freedom of movement than the trailing guide rolls.

S. In a curtain iixture, a spring actuated curtain, :i curtain tube mounted in the lower end ot' said curtain. spring pressed shoes mounted in said tube to engage guideways, rotar guiding members mounted in the ends of said shoes, grips adjacent said guiding members and relatively movable with respect thereto to allow the leading guiding members to have greater freedom of movement along said guideways than the trailing guiding members.

9. ln a curtain fixture, a shoe provided with slots to cooperate with a guideway and guide rolls loosely pivoted in said slots to egagesaid guideway and said shoe to allow the leading guide roll to have a greater freedom of movement than the trailing guide roll.

l0. ln a curtain fixture, a curtain, shoes provided with slots, means to mount 'said shoes on said curtain to reciprocate with respect thereto and to cooperate with guideways and guide rolls loosely pivoted in said slots to engage` said guideways and said shoes to allow the leading guide rolls to have greater freedom of movement than the trailing guide rolls.

11. ln a curtain fixture, a spring actuated curtain, a tube in said curtain, and spring-pressed shoes mounted in said tube to engage guideways, each of said shoes comprising a spindle to tit within said tube, a casing secured to said spindle, there being slots formed in the ends of said casing, pivoted guide rolls loosely mounted in said slots to engage said guideways and grips to coperate with said guide rolls to automatically vary the freedom of movement of said guide rolls alongl said guideways to allow the leading guide roll to have greater freedom of movement than the trailing guide roll.

GEORGE H, FORSYTH.

Witnesses C. C. LINTHICUM, FnnDnmeK C. GOODWIN. 

